January 28, 2011

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I was running an errand at lunch today, and decided to check out Lei Bistro (利小舘), a cheap eatery run by the Lei Garden Group that somehow got themselves a macaron from the obviously delusional Bibendum. I haven't given Lei Garden a dime of my money since my disastrous meal a year ago, and I was curious to see what this place was all about.
Make no mistake, this is a cheap eatery for the masses - not unlike the Tsui Wah (翠華) chain of 24-hour restaurants. In fact, the staff here wear yellow polo shirts, too... We ordered by ticking a few items off a double-sided checklist.

Puff pastry with shredded radish (蘿蔔絲酥餅) - this was pretty decent. The flavors of the radish were good, and the center was hot enough without scalding my tongue.

Deep-fried taro puff (蜂巢芋盒) - yes, this was something that made me want to shout "WTF?!" The dish arrived cold, with the inside barely lukewarm. And the taro stuffing tasted of alkali, like someone just dumped a spoonful of baking soda. Yuck.

Deep-fried pork chop (椒鹽排骨) - this was OK, but not sure why they decided to put curry powder in the batter.

Stir-fried flat noodles with barbecued pork and scallions (薑蔥叉燒撈粗麵) - not bad, although it would be better if the noodles didn't have the taste of alkali.

Xiaolongbao (小籠包) - these were actually decent. The skin was reasonably thin and soft, while there was plenty of pork juice inside.

Do I feel like I've just eaten at a Michelin-starred restaurant? Not remotely. The food is average at best, and there were failed dishes. So I ask again: what the heck were those Michelin guys smoking, and can I have some?